"I looked in the mirror one day and didn't recognize myself and I didn't know how I got there. There is a difference between living an active lifestyle and living a healthy lifestyle. I liked being outside and working out, but when I looked in the mirror I didn't recognize my face."
Camerly is a stay-at-home mother of two.
Before having her children she led quite an active lifestyle. In high school, she swam competitively and was on the track team. She was a serious athlete.
But when she went off to college, things changed when her focus shifted on school.
"I have always been strong, but focusing on completing my degree, coupled with an unhealthy approach towards food quantity and ignorance of how food is medicine and fuel, I saw my weight increase significantly."
After college, Camerly had her first child, Judah.
"It wasn’t until I became pregnant with my first child, that I realized that my wellness would forever affect my child’s wellness. Being active has been a priority since then."
To lose the baby fat, Camerly tried running. She never really enjoyed the impact it had on her body or that it took her away from her kids and her family, but she pushed through.
She often ran 13-mile runs for two hours and by the time she got back, she was too exhausted to spend time with her family. Nevertheless, her goals pushed her to train for a marathon. Unfortunately, it led to an injury -
"A friend encouraged me to train for a half marathon. I did but found that I hated the long runs away from my family. And, during the race itself, I gave myself a bad case of bursitis in my right hip. I couldn’t do any exercise with impact for over these months."
Finding a Jump Rope
Because of her injury, she couldn't exercise for another three months.
When she finally decided to get back into it, she started looking for an alternative way of exercising that was low impact and safe for her to do.
That's when she came across jump rope training -
"I saw an advertisement on For Crossrope's free 30-day challenge. I was feeling desperate. I was scared of running and needed to try something new. I joined the community that day and I started jumping with my husband's old rope. It instantly clicked."
Though she loved jumping, her husband's rope was far too big for her and she quickly realized that it wasn't challenging enough because it was too light. She felt limited.She saw community members talking about how the heavier ropes were more challenging and versatile, and she thought that would be a good way to challenge myself.
"For Christmas, my husband got me the Titan rope and another limited edition Rope from Crossrope. I wanted to demonstrate my jump rope abilities, so I started jumping bear feet with the Titan rope. My toe was black and blue for a while. Lesson learned!"
With a heavy jump rope in hand, Camerly felt that the possibilities were endless. Soon, her husband started adding to her collection. For each birthday or anniversary, he would buy her a new weighted rope to add to her Jump Rope Fitness System. Camerly is now the proud owner of nearly every Crossrope set, including the Get Fit Bundle.
Jumping rope has become Camerly's favorite form of exercise. Not only has it helped her lose weight and gain lean muscle, she is able to do it anytime and anywhere so she doesn't have to be away from her family while working out. She now loves to squeeze in a high impact workout instead of going for a two-hour run.
"The ropes are high quality which I really appreciate. The interchangeable handles are fantastic. With jump rope, I can jump and have a powerful workout. I can do it anytime and anywhere with my kids. On the beach, on a cruise. I don't have to be absent to work out. It's a very social form of fitness. My kids love watching and pretending to do it. The potential for me as a mom was much greater."
Camerly has noticed that her arms and shoulders were much more defined. She noted feeling stronger and having more endurance and stamina. Since she started jumping, she has tried many other forms of exercise without ever fearing that she wouldn't be able to make it through a session, a run, or fitness class even though the only training that she had done is with her rope and bodyweight exercises.
"With jumping, I can lift heavier weights than I could before. I only lift once a week, so being able to only lift once a week and see gains means a lot. It’s the only thing I can do at home, with my kids, and get the results that I want. Jumping is my stress relief, an outlet for me, one of the primary ways that I take care of myself, and something that I love to share with my community."
"I can walk around in a bathing suit, wear a crazy dress, and not feel self-conscious. As women and moms, when our bodies change it mean a lot to feel beautiful, strong and fit. Even with my husband, it's important for me to feel those things."
Camerly has participated in a few of Crossrope's performance challenges and regularly comes out as a top performer. In fact, as of the publishing of this article, she holds the all-time fastest time for completing 500 jumps with the 2LB Heavy Rope (her time is 3:43).
"Jumping made an impact on my body that nothing else had. A huge part of it was confidence- it's mental. Jumping gives me a lot of confidence. I know that if I practice, I will get better. I love Cossrope's Performance Challenges because I doubt that I am gonna get faster or stronger, but then I do it a break my personal records!"
One of the things that Camerly loves most about jumping is that she can share it with her family, friends, and loved ones. She often jumps with her friends, mother, and husband! When Camerly first started jumping, she found that she needed advice and motivation. Plenty of community members were willing to offer their advice and their stories which ultimately inspired her to push harder. Being in the community became akin to having a ton of free online fitness coaches!
"When I started Jay Silver was super encouraging to me. He was a beginner too but he had such great advice about how I could take care of myself as I was starting my journey. Brandy Friend also inspired me. She is so strong, positive, and encouraging. I knew she was doing it and that meant that I could do it too. Now we're over 60,000 members, and there are so many inspiring people and stories. Steve Gaspard is also so helpful and inspiring. He called me out and said I was doing my pushups wrong and volunteered to help me improve my form."
Camerly will be traveling in July, and she will be meeting up with Jennika- a jumper in the community who she has never met but is very eager to meet and jump with.
"People are loving on each other. They're always looking out for each other and willing to offer constructive criticism. There is such a long list of people that inspire me. It's a unique thing to be able to be authentic and vulnerable in an online community of that size. There are not many others like this community."
Camerly's Advice
Camerly's advice is to practice self-control, particularly when it comes to nutrition.
"Nutrition was a big part of my journey. I have always struggled with self-control. I just love good food. If it tastes good, I just want to keep eating it. For a long time, I thought if I can work out a lot, I can eat whatever I want. I think learning self-control was key."
Camerly spent a lot of time in the kitchen creating things that taste good, but that weren't healthy. The point of a healthy diet is to have everything in moderation and to understand that food is not a hobby or a pass time. It's a way to sustain and refuel your body.
"I want my kids to know that you can eat healthily and have control. I want them to learn and see that I'm having fun and taking care of myself in the gym. I want them in the kitchen with me so they know that nutrition takes works. It's easier to make a pizza or hot dogs (sometimes important to enjoy). I want them to be purposeful in their lives. My fitness is not just for me, it's for my kids."
“After our half marathon, I stumbled across a 30-day jump rope fitness challenge from Crossrope. I signed up and jumped daily for 2 weeks until the challenge began. I really just accidentally found jump ropes and fell in love.”
Remembering that was very impactful for Camerly; remembering that it was not just about her. Being healthy is a huge part of how she could love and take care of the people in her life.
"If I'm not healthy I'm not loving my family well. Taking care of yourself is also a way that you can take care of the people around you. I have so many days when I think I'm not jumping today. I didn't sleep well, kids were fussy... But then I remember how fun it is to jump and how much it relieves my stress. I remember how much I want to be here, how much I want to be here with my kids. It's bigger than being strong or being able to jump 500 jumps with a 2lb rope. I know that when I go out and pick up my ropes, what I'm doing is not just for me."
It's important to remember that each one of us is important and valuable to someone. Everyone has something to offer, and you can't function at your best if you're sick or unhealthy/ Life is finite so it's important to have the ability to give it your all while you can.
Each one of us regardless of where we are in our lives is valuable to somebody. And valuable point blank. We have a lot to offer and you can't offer it if you're sick. If you're sick you still have something to offer, but you can't give it all you have. Life is finite, Be everything you can be.
Looking towards the future, Camerly is looking forward to being around her family and making sure that her kids know that living a healthy and full life takes work. Her goal is to continue to get strong and build muscle and definition. She wants to continue nourishing her body and soul so that she is able to care for her family and loved ones for a long time to come.
Thank you, Camerly
Thanks for sharing your story Camerly and for being a constant source of inspiration. We look forward to seeing you continuously hit your fitness goals.Questions or comments for Camerly? Please leave them in the comment section below!
Related Articles
